Studies of independence and conformity: I. A minority of one against a unanimous majority.

Abstract

Asch reports here the first of a series of studies on "some of the conditions responsible for independence and lack of independence in the face of arbitrary group pressure." (1) While the minority member of the group tended to remain "preponderantly accurate," it was found that "the contradictions by the majority deflected considerably the estimates of the minority in its direction." (2) There were considerable variances in the ability of individuals to resist the arbitrary judgments of the majority. (3) The greatest errors found in the minority judgments occurred when public announcement of the decision was required, and diminished in the extent of error when the need for announcing it publicly was removed. (4) "The action of the majority controlled the level and quality of errors." (5) The individuals who represented the minority "showed a marked tendency to be consistently independent, yielding, or intermediate in coping with the pressure of the majority.".